Continuous metal casting is conventionally practiced utilizing a furnace, ladle or tundish to continuously charge molten metal to a water jacketed mold. A thin layer of the molten metal which contacts the chilled surface of the mold solidifies and forms a thin walled casting with a molten core which continuously issues from the bottom of the mold onto a supporting apron set with rollers to bend and direct the casting along a curved path through cooling water sprays. At the point of horizontal tangency to the curved arc of the casting, a second set of bending rolls straightens the casting for travel along a run-out table where the casting is further cooled and is flame cut to desired lengths. In passing through the bending and straightening rolls, the casting is tensilely stressed and the skin is stretched;in order to minimize the danger of rupturing the skin of the casting and to avoid spills of molten metal, the radius of curvature of the arc through which the casting is bent is made relatively large and the elevation of the mold above the work floor relatively great compared to that which would otherwise be employed if the casting were not stretched by being bent.
U.S. Pats. Nos. 3,447,591, 3,837,391, and 3,780,552 show continuous casting apparatus equipped with roller pairs contacting, respectively, only the inner and outer peripheral faces of a curved casting; only the radial faces of such a casting; and only non-parallel faces of a casting with a trapezoidally configured cross-section. Nothing in the prior art shows means which alter the cross-sectional configuration of a casting to effect change in axial linearity nor does any prior art show means for bending a casting without tensilely stressing and stretching it.